雅思阅读丨英国脱欧，苏格兰脱英?

苏格兰又要公投了?近日苏格兰首席大臣、苏格兰民族党斯特金宣布，苏格兰政府将会推动新一轮脱英公投，草案将在近期公布。

本期的雅思阅读栏目，长沙新航道小编就和大家一起看看英国人又要闹哪出。当英国首相特蕾莎·梅准备在明年3月份启动脱欧谈判的时候，苏格兰抢先一步，以脱英实现留欧的目标。

A fresh push for independence has emerged in Scotland after a majority of voters across the United Kingdom approved a British exit, or Brexit, from the European Union, while Scottish voters opposed the departure.

Nicola Sturgeon, the first minister of the Scottish National Party, announced Thursday that she aims to introduce legislation next week that could pave the way for another independence vote before Britain formally leaves the EU.

"Hear this: if you think for one single second that I'm not serious about doing what it takes to protect Scotland's interests, then think again," Ms. Sturgeon told a party conference in Glasgow,The Guardian reported.

Ignoring Scotland's parliamentary voice would be an act of "constitutional vandalism," Sturgeon added, challenging Brexit's legal basis.

"There is no rational case for taking the UK out of the single market, and there is no authority for it either," she told fellow party members.

In 2014, a referendum for Scottish independence from the UK failed, garnering only 45 percent of the vote.

During the June Brexit vote, however, Scots showed a clear divide on the issue of continued EU membership: 62 percent voted in favor of remaining in the bloc, versus 47 percent in England, 48 percent in Wales, and 56 percent in Northern Ireland.

The issue has driven a political wedge between London and the leaders in the Scottish capital, Edinburgh, and it may be shifting the nature of Scottish cultural identity, too, as The Christian Science Monitor's correspondent Peter Geoghegan reported earlier this year:

Just as political events out of London in the 1980s and '90s – including the policies of Margaret Thatcher and the creation of a Scottish parliament – spurred Scots to increasingly identify themselves as Scottish rather than British, so, too, could Brexit strengthen Scotland's relationship with Europe. As the English and other pro-Brexit groups in Britain push away from the European Union, Scots may increasingly embrace Europeanness as a way of distinguishing themselves from their neighbors to the south.

Laura Cram, a professor of politics at Edinburgh University, told the Monitor that this rise in pro-Europe sentiment could be more about Scots themselves than the benefits they see in maintaining close ties with Brussels.

"If you feel deprived of something then it matters to you even more," she said. "Not only did you not vote for it, but now someone is taking it away from you."

While the latest polls indicate that the Brexit has not significantly boosted public support for Scottish independence, the bill Sturgeon plans to introduce could prove itself useful as a bargaining chip by directly challenging British Prime Minister Theresa May's hardline Brexit approach. Sturgeon's spokesman told The Guardian that the bill's immediate goal is designed to give Scotland a full range of options for optimal leverage in the Brexit deal.

Sturgeon will seek to lead a group of opposition lawmakers, but her critics accuse of her playing partisan politics with serious issues.

"This isn't the action of a first minister of Scotland but an SNP fundamentalist who puts independence first, last, and always," said Ruth Davidson, the Scottish Tory leader, The Guardianreported.

Citing economic challenges, Scottish Labour leader Kezia Dugdale added that another independence referendum is "the last thing we need."

在英国多数人投票同意脱欧，而多数苏格兰选民支持留欧之后，苏格兰地区再次掀起要求独立的风潮。

苏格兰首席大臣、民族党尼古拉•斯特金10月13日宣称，将于下周发布新法案，为英国正式脱欧前的新一轮独立公投做准备。

据《卫报》报道，斯特金在格拉斯哥举行的民族党会议中表示，“听着：哪怕你有一秒钟认为我不是在认真捍卫苏格兰人民的利益，那就再好好想想。”

斯特金对“脱欧”的法律根据表示质疑，并补充说，忽视苏格兰议会的意见是在“违背宪法”。

她对民族党同伴说，“将英国从欧盟单一市场中脱离既不合理，也没有权力这样做。”

2014年，苏格兰在独立公投中只获得45%的投票，脱英失败。

然而，在六月份的英国脱欧投票中，苏格兰人就留欧问题与其它地区产生明显分歧：62%的苏格兰人支持英国留欧，而英格兰只有47%支持，威尔士48%，北爱尔兰56%。

据《基督教科学箴言报》通讯记者皮特•盖根今年早些时候报道，这一问题加剧了伦敦与苏格兰首府爱丁堡领导人之间的政治分歧，并将有可能从本质上改变苏格兰文化身份。

20世纪80年代和90年代，玛格丽特•撒切尔夫人政策的出台和苏格兰议会的建立这些伦敦以外的政治事件使苏格兰人更愿意将自己视为苏格兰而非英国子民，因此脱欧将加强苏格兰与欧洲的联系。随着英格兰以及英国其它支持脱欧地区对欧盟的推开，苏格兰人民将更愿意成为欧盟成员，将自己与英国南方的“邻居们”区别开来。

爱丁堡大学政治学教授劳拉• 克拉姆对《基督教科学箴言报》说，苏格兰人民拥欧情绪高涨更多是因为苏格兰人民本身而非与布鲁塞尔保持密切联系所带来的利益。

“如果你感觉到自己被抢夺，那么这件事就会对你更重要，”她说，“你之前既没有投票，现在还要莫名遭受别人的抢夺。”

尽管民意调查显示脱欧并没有在很大程度上获得民众对苏格兰独立的支持，但斯特金计划发布的法案将是她反对英国首相特雷莎•梅“硬脱欧”方式的有效谈判筹码。斯特金发言人告诉《卫报》，法案的最直接目的是让苏格兰在“脱欧”事件中拥有多种选择，从而获得利益。

斯特金将着手领导一组反对“脱欧”的立法人员，但有评论家指控她在利用重大问题玩弄党派政治。

据《卫报》报道，苏格兰保守党领导人露丝•戴维森表示，“这不是苏格兰首席大臣应该做的事，而是从始至终将独立放首位的苏格兰民族党基要派人士的任务。”

考虑到经济挑战，苏格兰工党首领凯西娅•达格代尔补充说，新一轮独立公投是“我们最不需要的”。

更多长沙雅思培训相关资讯，请关注长沙新航道官方网站和官方微信平台。英语高能高分，就上新航道！！！